


Looking for Answers

by ZebraLily112



Series: Trapped [3]
Category: Gravity Falls
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Dipper's Journals, Don't Like Don't Read, F/M, Family Feels, Fluff, Fluffy Ending, Ford Pines Needs a Hug, Ford works hard, Gravity Falls Is Weird, Gravity Falls Oregon, Gravity Falls References, Gravity Falls Spoilers?, Hopeful Ending, I Tried, Insomnia, Inspired By Gravity Falls, Magic, Mentioned Characters, Nerdy Ford Pines, No negative comments, Older Dipper Pines, Older Mabel Pines, Older Man/Younger Woman, Original Character(s), Post-Gravity Falls, Protective Stan Pines, Ratings: G, Returning to Gravity Falls, Romance, Stan being Stan, Summer, Technology, Where is Dipper?, link to awesomeness, mentions of abduction, original creatures
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-12
Updated: 2019-01-12
Packaged: 2019-10-09 02:15:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,090
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17398076
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ZebraLily112/pseuds/ZebraLily112
Summary: Part 3 of the 'Trapped' Series. Back in Gravity Falls, the Pines family has been trying to find Dipper ever since the teenager disappeared without a trace. Sadly, their efforts have come up with nothing. Can they find anything that might help them find Dipper?Disclaimer: I do not own Gravity Falls, so I do not own any of these characters! I also do not own Courtney Rose, she belongs to my DA friend Nala6098





	Looking for Answers

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own anything but my own imagination! I do not own Marvel or Disney, so I do not own any of these characters! Including Courtney Rose, who belongs to my DA friend Nala6098 
> 
> Note: If you want to learn more about Courtney Rose, please visit here: https://www.deviantart.com/nala6098 her art is amazing! See for yourself!

Soft rays of sunlight slowly began to creep along a quiet forest, causing the nocturnal creatures to head to their 'homes' to sleep. A light breeze slowly made its way through the tall trees causing the limbs to dance. Birds began to sing softly, greeting the morning as the temperature slowly began to rise now that the sun was up. Even though it was early August, the past few mornings had been quite content, only getting to the high seventies during the day. It was a bit strange for Gravity Falls, Oregon to have mild temperatures in the midst of Summer, but no one was complaining.

The sunlight continued to travel along the ground, eventually finding an old-looking house called: The Mystery Shack. The area was silent except for the birds singing their morning song, and the occasional chatter of the forest creatures. As the sun rose higher, its light greeting the windows of the house, most of them being cracked open. Wanting to play, a breeze made its way through one of the open windows, causing a few papers that were on a wooden desk to move, but they didn't fall due to being under some books. 

The breeze twirled around, tickling along the gray and white light-weight blankets that covered the one king-sized bed that was in the room. The sound of a person moving under the blankets caused the breeze to disappear as more sunlight filtered in, revealing the person to be an adult female with long brown hair, wearing a white pajama top and light blue bottoms. The female stirred when the sound of loud 'craws' were heard outside.

"Darn Blue Jays." the female sighed

With a yawn, the brunette sat up and stretched causing a few joints to crack at the action as the sounds of morning in the Mystery Shack started up right on time. The female smiled as she turned her attention to the nightstand, finding a purple glasses case with her name: Courtney Rose written in beautiful cursive on it. She took her glasses out of the case and put them on, finding the other case that was gray, open and empty.

"Ford?" Courtney asked, looking around

The room was quiet and still, the other side of the bed was cold, but it did look like Ford had slept there at some point during the night. Courtney shook her head fondly, her boyfriend was famous for his insomnia, so for him to be up so early, wasn't unheard of. She knew that Ford would pop up eventually, so she set about getting dressed for the day.

While it was true that Soos technically owned the Mystery Shack, the man instantly agreed to letting Stan, Ford, and Courtney stay there after the news of Dipper's disappearance was told to the Pines family. Ford wanted to be near the lab, tapping into radio frequencies hoping to hear anything about Dipper, or find a signal that Dipper could be using... but so far, nothing. Ford believed that wherever Dipper was, he either didn't have access to a radio, out of radio range, or was being well supervised so he couldn't call for help.

Having a strong feeling that Ford hadn't eaten anything yet, Courtney headed downstairs after getting dressed. The smell of fresh coffee hit her, and breathed it in with a content smile as she entered the kitchen.

"Morning, Courtney." a voice greeted

The female nodded a friendly greeting "Good morning, Stanley."

Stan's reply was a yawn followed by a grunt as he propped up the newspaper so he could read the headlines. Courtney didn't mind the short reply, Stan is always like this in the morning. 

"Ford downstairs in the lab already?" Courtney asked

"It's where he is almost every morning." Stan replied "He's probably fiddling with that portal gun he made."

Courtney put a couple pieces of bread in the toaster and pushed the lever down, she then pulled down a small plate and a coffee mug with a pack of wolves on it.

"Do you think it'll work?" Courtney asked curiously "Ford's invention will bring Dipper home?"

Stan put the newspaper down and leaned back a bit, scratching at his five o' clock shadow as the toast popped up.

"I've seen Ford make amazing things, if he thinks it'll work, then who am I to argue with him?" Stan replied

Courtney spread some grape jam on the toast and poured some coffee into the mug, doctoring it to Ford's liking.

"I just hope Dipper's okay and comes back home safely." Courtney stated "Everyone is trying so hard to find him... it pains me to see nothing come of it."

Stan shifted "We're all hoping that Dipper comes home... but I would also like to know who took him."

Courtney nodded in agreement, it baffled everyone that Dipper disappeared without a trace. The police from Gravity Falls and surrounding areas have investigated, but so far no clues had come up as to who took the teen.

"Hopefully he's found soon, it's been four months." Courtney said putting the small plate in her left hand

Stan nodded "We're all hoping that he's found."

The two froze when the sound of a small explosion came from below them, followed by a couple muffled curses. Courtney put everything down and ran out of the kitchen to the vending machine, punching in the code quickly. Once it opened, the female rushed down the stairs.

"Ford?" Courtney called "Are you okay?"

A couple coughs replied, followed by the sound of the ventilation system turning on to get rid of the smoke. Courtney ventured further into the room to find Ford standing by his work table, coughing into the bend of his elbow.

"I'm fine... just a small mishap." Ford coughed "I'll fix it."

Courtney walked forward and put her hands on Ford's arm, the older man turned his head revealing faint dark circles under his eyes and his five o' clock shadow looked scruffier than usual. Ford's hair was a mess (no doubt from tugging at it in frustration), there was a smudge of oil on his cheek, and Courtney could hear Ford's stomach grumbling.

"You need a break." Courtney stated "C'mon, you're having some breakfast, Mister."

"Well... I could use something to eat." Ford conceded, grabbing Courtney's hand

After getting Ford out of the lab and sitting him down at the kitchen table, Courtney put the toast and coffee in front of him. Once she was certain Ford was okay and eating, Courtney started making herself something to eat. Stan took in his brother's appearance and took the piece of cinnamon toast off his plate, putting it on Ford's.

"Been at it a while, haven't ya?" Stan asked

Ford glanced at the clock that read 8:15, and gave a small shrug as he finished what had been on his plate and began drinking his coffee.

"About three hours or so." Ford replied honestly "Once my brain was awake, so was the rest of me."

Courtney looked at her boyfriend in concern, as she went over to the table with her plate as Ford yawned. She knew that Ford's sleeping habits were sporadic, but she also knew that the man needed to sleep and relax. Trouble was, once Ford put his mind to something, he didn't like to stop. Courtney would let him work for now, but she promised herself that tonight she would make sure Ford was truly relaxed before going to bed.

"How about I go down with you?" Courtney offered "Maybe we can find something useful in Dipper's journals that Pacifica let us borrow."

"We could try that." Ford replied "The crystals I found aren't working... maybe we can find something else in those journals."

"And when you need a break, let me know." Courtney said "I can help your brain relax a bit, yeah?"

Ford smiled "Sounds good to me."

"Ugg... the sap in here is giving me heart burn." Stan groaned standing up "I'm going into town with Mabel to get some groceries, so feel free to fill the lab with sweetness."

Both Ford and Courtney rolled their eyes as Stan left the kitchen, and put their dishes in the sink. The couple headed down to the lab, opening up a drawer of Ford's desk to pull out the two journals that Dipper had completed. Ford placed his six fingered hand on the blue cover, right over the pine tree symbol.

"I hope we find something, the longer he's missing, the less likely he'll be found." Ford stated

Courtney sat down on the old couch and patted the spot next to her, Ford sat down tiredly and placed his head on his girlfriend's shoulder for a moment.

"The best we can do is try, Fordsie." Courtney said rubbing Ford's back with her free hand

After an hour, Ford and Courtney were almost done going through the first journal. It was amazing what Dipper had discovered in Gravity Falls. Werewolf Cupcakes, Bluebird Foxes, Cloning Crystals, and many other things... but so far, they hadn't found anything that could possibly help them.

Ford rubbed his temples "My brain feels like it's about to explode."

Courtney moved so that her legs were folded underneath her and patted her lap, Ford placed the second journal on an extra pillow that had fallen to the floor and laid on his side, his head on Courtney's lap. The brunette female buried her fingers in Ford's dark gray hair and gently rubbed them into Ford's scalp, the older man groaned in bliss and closed his eyes.

"I'll finish the first journal, you just relax." Courtney stated

Ford hummed in response, settling further into his girlfriend's lap, enjoying the feel of his brain settling down and becoming a bit more clear. Courtney smiled down at the man, using her short fingernails to scratch into Ford's scalp a bit, her smile growing when Ford shivered and pressed into the touch like an over-grown tabby cat. Courtney turned her attention to the journal, going to a new page.

"Hmm... the Zebracorn." Courtney read "These creatures live deep in the forests of Gravity Falls, they're very friendly if they feel you're not a threat to their herd. They eat all kinds of vegetation and stay in the area all year long, growing thick coats during the Winter. The head stallion Lightning Shock, told me that their colorful manes hold magical properties that could be used for any reason if it were to me made into a powder."

Ford's eyes shot open "Powdered Zebracorn mane! That could work!"

"Really?" Courtney asked curiously, removing her hand from Ford's hair

Ford sat up "If we get a lock of Zebracorn mane and find a way to make into a powder, we could combine it with the crystals of the portal gun... we could open a portal to where Dipper is."

It sounded like a great idea, but Courtney pulled the book closer to Ford so he could see the page better, including the beautiful illustration of the creature in question.

"But where can we find a herd of Zebracorn? The forests of Gravity Falls are massive." Courtney stated

"We might need Mabel to call in a few favors when she and Stanley get back." Ford replied standing up, excitedly pacing around the lab "This... This will work Courtney, I can feel it!"

Courtney smiled as she closed the journal, setting it down on the couch and stood up. She loved seeing the positive shift in Ford's mood, she liked seeing him happy, and thanks to this, he was quickly getting there. Quick as a flash, Ford pulled Courtney into a hug, his strong arms wrapping around her.

"Thank you for everything." Ford said, breathing in Courtney's scent "I know all of this hasn't been easy on anyone, and you've been caught in the middle of all of it."

"You don't have to thank me for anything." Courtney replied "Your family means a lot to you, and they've basically become mine in the process. I'm gonna do whatever I can to help."

"I don't know what we'd do without you.... especially me." Ford stated, hugging tighter

Courtney nuzzled Ford's neck "You'll never find out, Fordsie, I'm not going anywhere."

Ford pulled back from the hug slightly, a loving smile on his face as he looked at his amazing girlfriend. Ford counted himself among the luckiest men in the world to have someone like Courtney in his life.

"Good." Ford said pulling Courtney into a loving kiss

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoyed it! I did my very best with Courtney Rose since she isn't my OC, so if you have anything negative to say, please don't post it here! And please don't post anything negative on the DA link I shared. Nala6098 was nice enough to let me include her OC in this. If you missed the link for Nala6098 on DA, here it is again! https://www.deviantart.com/nala6098


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